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Kershaw Shuffle

I apologize in advance this is my first shot at a review on here. For my birthday I received a Kershaw Shuffle from my brother in law. Its marked model # 3800 on the blade. The knife has a 2 3/8 blade in 3cr13mov steel, with an overall open length of 5 5/8 inches and a weight of 2.8oz. It features a liner lock, bottle opener, and screw driver tip/lanyard hole. I was intrigued with this little knife so I put it to work to see how the 3cr13 steel holds up.

My testing was based on things I would normally encounter with my EDC. I cut up different types of cardboard (about 300 total cuts), zip ties, packing tape, stripped some wire, some plastic, whittled down some shims, and even got into a soda can. Now I am no steel expert but as far as edge retention goes this knife performed very similar to 8cr13mov in my experiences. It was also very easy to sharpen, 5 passes a side on the sharp maker and it was from dull to near shaving sharp. I found the action on the knife to be relatively smooth. There was no blade play and lock up is about 50% on my example.

The ergos on the knife are ok. There is a finger choil on the blade that I personally found useful. On this small knife it helped to choke up when cutting for me. One thing I did not care for was the bottle opener. It creates a hot spot during use. It is also sharp and I find it digs into my hand when I am closing the knife (deactivating the liner lock). I may end up taking the dremel to it. The screw driver tip on the end would work fine on larger screws. I think it would also be useful as a scraper or if you absolutely had to pry something you could use it (way better than using the blade). The pocket clip is good, a standard deep carry clip. The new K texturing provides an adequate grip. The fit and finish are on par with the price point.

Overall I think this is a good knife for the price. I think it will sell to the non knife nut consumer who is at the store looking for a lower priced knife that they just plan to use. I have it in my glove box right now. I will probably carry it off and on as well, there is something about a gifted knife that makes me want to carry it.

Thats a nice look at this little knife. I was just whining in another thread about the $200+ street price of the impending Spyderco Domino. Honestly, I think I would get more tingly about the Shuffle at $16 than some of these higher end knives at 15x the price. I'll definitely be adding a Shuffle to my arsenal. I dig the spendier knives too, with all they have to offer, but these entry level Kershaws are really fun.

Nice review, Nic. My first post on this forum, too. I'm a big Kershaw fan. When I saw one of these at WalMart for $16, I snatched it up in a heartbeat. In another thread, people were discussing the two different models, the 8700 and the 3800, and the specs of the two. I'm wondering if the 8700 is made from 8CR whereas the 3800 from 3CR. For the record, my knife is a 3800, with no steel grade marked anywhere on the blade. The specs say that the clip can be reversed to suit your choice of tip up/tip down, but I don't see how that's possible. A few disappointing issues that I've come across are:

1. The scratch that the detent leaves on the blade sure is ugly.
2. No speed assist. Not a big deal, but it would have been nice (and probably cost more).
3. I think the lanyard hole/screw driver head is nice, but using a lanyard then gets in the way of the screwdriver. I guess since it's not something I'd use every day, no biggies. Oh, and I would have preferred a phillips head, but I understand why they didn't go that route.
4. Like you, I have issues with the opener. It would have been nice if they had rounded the point on the bottle opener. Pokes me in the thumb every time I pull the knife. Still, I'm betting all my pain and suffering will go away when I crack open that first, cold brewsky.
5. I've had and used a lot of folders, so I know how to open them. Still, a few times when opening this knife, my thumb seems to have brushed against the business side of the blade. Not cuts so far, but I'm being cautious. I think the problem lies with my stubby thumb. I think it drags on the wide blade, slowing its momentum, then as my thumb comes back, it brushes the blade. If I aggressively flick it, my thumb flies safely out of harm's way. Guess I can't be timid.

All things considered, I really like the knife. Like all Kershaws, razor sharp out of the box, solid construction and great price. Like most, my EDC consists of several knives. This will definitely work as my every day "throw-away" utility carry. Nice and reliable, but not so expensive that I'd cry about losing or breaking it.